VOLUNTARY SERVICE AS A TOOL INFLUENCING THE DEVELOPMENT OF PROFESSIONAL CAREER

In the article, the author systematizes the knowledge concerning the issue of voluntary service as a tool that contributes to the changing of the interpersonal competences of future job candidates. Voluntary service enables young people to get valuable experience, influences the development of professional career and facilitates the entry of young people in the modern labour market. Thanks to the volunteering, they gain a competitive advantage on the labour market regardless of industry or position. Studies show that they are better perceived by future employers as candidates and have better perspectives in finding a job in the contemporary labour market. Nowadays good education is not enough. There is something else needed like additional competencies outside the formal education. The tool for acquiring such competences is a voluntary service which plays an increasingly important role among the younger generation. The purpose of the article is to systematize knowledge in the field of volunteering and to present the relations between voluntary activity and the prospects of candidates entering the labour market. The article reviews Polish and European literature and reports on this topic. Conclusions are that employers appreciate the non-professional activity of job candidates. Currently, young people are aware that volunteering activities have a positive effect on their situation on the labour market.